The Need For Calculations
by PartayyyyLikeARockstarr
Summary: When Zach is showing up tired and bedraggled everday, can the team figure out what's going on? BBxHAxzachOC...please read and review! x0
1. Chapter 1

**this story kinda just came to me after watching an episode the other day…..go figure**

**enjoy and review!**

_**The Need For Calculations Chapter 1**_

Dr. Temperance Brennan sat in the lab, wondering where a certain squint of hers was. This was the eighth day Zach hadn't shown up for work, and he hadn't ever missed one day. Everyday he had called in sick and left a short voicemail that he would be out today. After, Dr. Brennan would try several times to call him back, but always found that his phone was off.

Suddenly, Temperance heard the beep that meant someone had entered the lab. She turned to see Zach walking towards her. But it was not the clean, neat Zach that she knew, no this Zach had bags under his eyes, bedraggled hair, and wore a wrinkled green polo with wrinkled tan pants. Temperance gasped as he walked towards her, tired and bedraggled.

"Oh my Gosh, Zach, are you ok? What happened?" she exclaimed.

Ignoring her question, he said, "Nothing. Booth said we have a case."

"Uh, I'll be right back." said Temperance, kind of scared that her youngest squint looked so, so….out.

She left the lab and found a 6-month pregnant Angela drawing over by the skull of their newest body. Angela and Hodgins had gotten married about a year ago, and Hodgins couldn't have been happier with Angela and a baby on the way. She walked up to her and said, "Have you seen Zach?"

"Yeah, he just walked into the lab." Angela said, not looking up from the drawing pad that was positioned on her growing belly.

"No, I mean, have you SEEN him? He looks like he hasn't slept in weeks!" exclaimed Temperance.

Just then, Zach walked out of the lab and Angela gasped, "Oh my God. Hey Zach, come here a sec!"

Zach lumbered over, slowly. When he was over, Angela said, "Zach, what happened? Look at you; you look like you haven't slept at all in the past week! What's the matter? Did something happen in your family? Zach?"

"I'm fine. And Dr. Brennan?"

"Yes?' she replied.

"Um, I'm going to need to be out of here by 7 every night. Is that all right?"

"Of course , Zach."

Right when Zach was starting to walk away, Hodgins showed up. "I got the results on that dirt sample. Its bisodi- Oh hey Zach!" Zach turned around the face him and Zach gasped. "Woah, man, what happened to you?"

"Nothing. I'm fine." Seeing their skeptical looks, he added, "I'm serious, guys. I'm fine."

The rest of the day went without comment. They solved the case and found the killer. Later that night, Angela was at Temperance's with Booth and Hodgins, and they decided to call Zach to talk to him.

They dialed the number to his apartment, and a very frazzled sounding Zach answered. "Hello?"

"Zach it's us. We need to talk."

"Guys, I'm fine. I have to go. Good bye." he said, hanging up.

"He is definitely not fine." said Booth.

**BonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBones BonesBonesBonesBones**

About 2 weeks past, with Zach looking a little better. Still, he had dark circles under his eyes and the team would occasionally find him asleep by a computer or slumped over in a chair. They would let him sleep, because they all knew, that for some strange reason, Zach wasn't getting sleep at home.

One day, the team was assembled in the lab, Booth on his phone, Angela sketching, Hodgins and Bones running tests. The lab door beeped, signaling someone coming in. They all turned and looked and saw Zach standing in the doorway with a baby seat in his hand and a diaper bag over his shoulder. He swallowed hard and confronted the surprised gazes of his team, "Um, the babysitter has the flu, and I had nowhere else to bring him, so um, yeah."

"I think we need to have a little story time." said Booth, as Bones fainted on top of Hodgins.

**I know it was short, but I just want to know what you thought…..so please review and tell me if I should continue!**

**love youuu!**


	2. Chapter 2

**well people really liked this story and I have a buttload of ideas so I decided to get this chapter over and done with…..**

**thanks to everyone who reviewed!! reviewslove!!**

**so please review this one too!!!!**

_**The Need For Calculations Chapter 2**_

After awaking Bones and moving to Bones's office it was time for Zach to start his story.

Except he really didn't want to.

"Guys, its stupid. I'm just going to bring him to a friend of mine's in a little bit. Just drop it." he protested, grabbing the diaper bag and the baby seat.

"Zach, we're your friends! You can tell us anything! Please." pleaded Angela,

"Well you guys aren't going to drop it, so I'll have to tell you. You might want to sit."

They all sat on the couches in Bones's office and Zach began to tell his mighty tale.

**(Ok his story is going to be in italics, but its not a flashback. I'm just lazy and I absolutely despise quotes.)**

_I used to date this girl about a year ago in college named Kayla. We were really close for a couple of moths, but then she suddenly picked up and left. She just left me a note that said that she loved me, but she had to leave because it was for the best. So a couple of days ago I got a phone call from Social Services saying that a woman named Kayla Bensidney had died in a fire, and that her son was in their custody. They had told me that on her son's birth certificate, it had my name listed as the father and I had sole custody of Matt. It turned out that she had been living in California, so I had to fly out and fill out all the paperwork. My mother absolutely flipped out when I told her, and said that Kayla was a whore and now I was stuck with a baby. I've gotten maybe an hour and a half of sleep every night at the most, I still haven't figured out how to brush my teeth and hold a baby at the same time, and I really suck at being a dad. So now you know. Ok? Can we please just drop it? I have to go drop him off at my cousin's place. _

By then, Angela had her hands over her mouth, while Hodgins hugged her from behind, and Bones was up trying to give Zach a giant hug as he had the diaper bag and the baby seat in his hands. He was out the door and halfway down the hall when the baby started wailing, so Zach had to stop and give him the pacifier. He kept spitting it out and Zach kept trying to put it back in. The team watched from the door, their eyes stuck on Zach. Finally, Zach pulled out a toy from the diaper bag and gave it to Matt and said quietly to him, "Heyy, bud, it's ok. We're good now." The baby quieted down and Zach left the building.

Now the team was confused. Bones sunk back into the couch and sighed, saying, "I can't believe he didn't call us. Or ask us for help."

"We have to help him. We can't just let him live like this. He needs help." said Angela, looking at Hodgins who nodded in agreement.

"But how?" said Booth.

**BonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBones**

Later that night, the group was assembled in Angela and Hodgin's kitchen in their hugenormous mansion. Angela held the phone in her hands, dialing Zach's home number.

After a few rings, sounds of a baby crying and a flustered voice filled the phone, "Hello?"

"Zach it's us. You sound like you need help. Please let us do something."

"Ugh, I'm out of diapers. Shhh, Matt, its ok. Shhhhhhh."

"We're getting you diapers and Temp and I are coming over."

"No, Ang, really I'm fine."

"We'll be there in 10 minutes."

Angela hung up the phone and grabbed Temperance. The men stood up to go with them, but Angela said, "No way. Go watch football or something. You are not going to be useful in this situation."

"Jeez, babe. Calm, remember?" said Hodgins in his defense.

"I am calm, sweetie." she said sarcastically, tuning to leave.

"Hey Temp, you drive. I don't trust her when she's angry. And hormonal." said Hodgins, quietly so Angela wouldn't hear him.

"I HEARD THAT JACK HODGINS AND YOU ARE DEAD WHEN WE GET BACK!" shouted Angela from the hallway.

"Love you too babe!" he shouted back, as he and Booth went into their huge movie theater room to watch the game.

**BonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBones**

With Temperance driving, they pulled up to the local drug store. They bought a dozen packages of diapers, getting curious looks from strangers, who were amused by a pregnant women and her friend trying to carry 12 packages of diapers to the checkout counter, then out to the car. Several people offered to help after they saw how much they were struggling, Angela with her belly in the way and Temperance not being too strong. 2 men and a woman helped them carry the diapers to the car, while Angela explained why they were buying 12 packs of diapers at 9 at night when it looked like the baby wasn't born yet. They laughed and explained that they were for a friend who was having some trouble getting things together. They laughed and said to tell their friend good luck, the girls thanked them, and they left.

Two girls piled into the car with all the diapers are drove to Zach's apartment building. They rode up to his apartment on the fourth floor. They were barely able to get all the diapers up; both women were struggling. They dropped all the diapers outside the door of Zach's apartment, which they heard a baby wailing his head off. They knocked and heard a yell back that it was open. They walked in and found Zach trying to calm down little Matt. They moved the diapers inside, and Zach said, "Guys, you are crazy."

"Here give me the baby." said Angela, accepting him from Zach's arms. She rocked him and he quieted, looking up at her with big brown eyes that looked exactly like Zach's. Temperance and Zach started moving the diapers into a small closet at the end of the hall.

"Thanks so much, guys. He's just a lot of work." said Zach with a sigh, rubbing his eyes.

Suddenly, Temperance's phone rang. The screen read "Seely". She answered, "Hey."

"Hi, Jack just wanted to make sure Angela's ok, and that she was not driving when she was mad. How's Zach?"

"Yeah tell him to calm down, she's fine."

"Jeez, is he flipping out again? I listened to him the first time, I didn't drive. Tell him I'm fine and to stop being such a worry wart." said Angela with a sigh, while Zach gave a small chuckle.

"She said she's fine and to tell him to stop worrying." said Temperance.

"Alright. Well, got to go, the games back." said Seely.

"Alright, we'll be back in a little bit. I won't let Angela drive."

"Ok, bye." finished Seely, hanging up.

"Oh my G-d! I have the best idea!" exclaimed Angela. "We are going to steal Matt for a night so you can sleep. Look at you, you're dead!"

"Ang, I'm fine, you need sleep more than I do."

"No way!! Jack and I need the practice anyway! It'll be fun. You need sleep." fought Angela, still going strong.

"Fine, but I'm only giving in because I'm too tired to argue." said Zach, rubbing his eyes again.

"Oh good! This will be so cute. Ok, what does he need?" said Angela, excitedly.

Together, Angela and Zach packed an overnight bag for Matt while temperance held him. They got the car seat out of Zach's car and moved it to Angela's. Zach kissed Matt good-bye and buckled him into the set, and stood in the parking lot, watching them drive away, waving. Afterward, he went back inside and plopped down on his bed, fully clothed, and slept.

**wow a lot longer than I expected…..hope u liked…the next chapter will be Angela and Hodgins fun adventure with baby Matt!! hopefully that will be up by Monday ((hence the "hopefully"))**

**please review!! constructive criticism is greatly wanted and appreciated!!!!!!**

**thanks,**

**Hope!**


	3. Chapter 3

**wow I'm absolutely loving this story so I'm just going like crazy with these chapters…..i'm just loving it so its going to keep coming!**

**REVIEW!!!!!**

_**The Need For Calculations Chapter 3**_

Angela and Temperance started on their way back to Angela's house. Suddenly, Angela said, "I have the biggest craving for Taco Bell. Want to stop?"

"Well, Jack warned me about what happens when you don't have your cravings fulfilled, so if I don't stop you'll probably take over the car and drive home and Jack will kill me so, sure we'll stop." replied Temperance, pulling into the next Taco Bell she saw. As they ordered at the drive-thru, Temperance looked back and saw little Matt fast asleep in his car seat.

"Aw, look Ang, he's asleep. The poor thing probably hasn't slept any more than Zach; he must be worn out. Maybe he'll sleep for you tonight." said Temperance with a grin.

"Jack is probably going to kill me. I'm just randomly bringing home a baby to spend the night." sighed Angela, as they drove around to the pick-up window.

"Well, that's your problem. I get to go home and SLEEP!" said Temperance, laughing.

They got their food and Angela immediately dug in. She finished as Temperance pulled into the mansion's driveway. Angela got out and grabbed the baby seat gently, not to wake Matt up. They walked inside and went through the many hallways to movie theatre. They stood in the doorway, watching the men sit on the edge of their seats until Angela snapped her fingers and the huge screen shut off. The men turned and walked towards the women. Angela had left the baby seat outside the doorway, so she could surprise Jack easier.

"How'd I go?" asked Jack, doing that cute little head tilt thing that Angela loved.

"Good, and I have a surprise for you." said Angela.

"Yeah?" asked Jack, lifting an eyebrow.

"Mmm-hmm." replied Angela, lifting the baby seat and showing little Matt still asleep in the baby seat. "He's going to sty here tonight! Zach needed sleep and we need practice, so I offered!"

The smile on Jack's face dropped and he looked at Angela like she had 20 heads.

"Haha, have fun man." laughed Booth, slapping Jack on the back. "Come on, Bones, we should get going, it's late."

"Have fun," called Temperance, as they got their coats and went to leave.

"So, what do you think, babe?" asked Angela, after Booth and Temperance had left.

"I think that you're insane, but I still love you. And Zach did need sleep." replied Hodgins slipping his arms around her and kissing her.

"Good." she said, kissing him back.

It was close to 11:30 when they but the baby in the room across the hall from their bedroom. The baby woke up at 12:30 for a feeding, as Zach said would happen, so Angela got up and fed him. She returned 10 minutes later, and quickly fell back to sleep in Jack's arms. At 1:30, he woke up again, and wanting Angela to sleep, he got up to feed the baby. At 2, he woke up again, so Angela got up and changed him and put him back to bed with a pacifier. Jack got up again to feed him at 3 and at 4, Angela went into the room, and didn't come back. Jack found her the next morning, slumped over in the chair in the room, sleeping with Matt in her arms, with a line of drool coming out of her mouth. After he laughed for about 10 minutes and took about 10 pictures, he woke her up and he had the cook make breakfast.

When Angela and Jack finally stumbled into work that morning, they had bags under their eyes, and Angela had a huge crick in her neck. Jack carried the baby seat with Matt happily gurguling inside. Zach stood in the lab with Temperance, looking over some bones, and they both looked up when the couple entered the room. Zach looked refreshed, the bags were less dark and he looked more upright and stable on his feet.

"I know I shouldn't have let you guys take him. You guys look dead. I'm really sorry." said Zach, rushing over and taking the baby seat.

"No, it was fun." said Angela, plopping down in the nearest chair, yawning and sinking her head into her hands, then yawning again.

"No guys, really, I feel really bad. I'm taking him back to my cousin's because the babysitter is still sick. You should really get some sleep guys." said Zach, patting Angela on the back.

He left, and Zach moaned and slumped over onto the table. "And it's only going to get worse." he said, with a groan, rubbing his eyes,

And Temperance just chuckled and shook her head.

**ok I know its so short…but the mind is empty**

**see…its 11 o'clock at night and Hope just got home from her huge karate test (which she passed with flying colors) and hope is tired and hope has no brain right now and hope needs sleep**

**(as you can see, I like talking about myself in the third person)**

**PLEASE REVIEW!!!!! CONSTRUCTIVE CRITISISM WELCOME…..BUT HOPE NO LIKEIE FLAMES! IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT….DON'T READ IT!!!**


	4. Chapter 4

**hola personas…..well heres chappie 4….i'm sick at home so I decided 2 do this….tell me what you think!**

_**The Need For Calculations Chapter 4**_

A week later, Angela and Jack had taken Matthew again. The night had gone well, to Angela's standards, but Jack still stumbled out of bed with bags under his eyes. So the next day, Angela went to bring Matt back to Zach so the babysitter could watch him, while Jack waited in the car.

Angela walked into the building and walked over to the elevator or the huge apartment complex. An old fancy woman was also standing by the elevator doors. When Angela approached, the woman clucked her tongue and shook her head and said, rather rudely, "One child and your expecting all ready? Hmph!"

Angela was shocked by this stiff woman's rudeness, but she didn't want any problems so she chuckled and replied, "Oh, no this is my friend's son. My husband and I watch him once a week or so for practice."

The woman apologized quietly, and both women stepped into the elevator. "What floor?" Angela asked.

"Fifth, please," replied the old woman.

"Oh, me too." replied Angela, pushing the button for the fifth floor.

The women rode up in silence and exited at the fifth floor. They both headed down the same hallway and stopped at the same door.

"What are you doing? This is my son's apartment." said the older woman with a feeling of disgust.

"Oh my gosh. Um, wow, you're Zach's mother. Um, I'm Angela Hodgins. My husband and I watch Matt every so often so Zach can sleep. Wow, this is awkward."

The woman bent over to look at baby Matthew. "Hmph." She said, acting so high and mighty, like she owned the world. "I just came to have a stern talk with Zachary. He has gone to far this time and the child needs to be in an orphanage."

"Oh, Mrs. Addy, please, don't tell him that. It's hard enough for him trying to manage being a single father and trying to cope with Kayla's death and that she didn't tell him about Matthew. He just can't handle you telling him that right now. Really, Mrs. Addy. Don't give me a look like that. You can't do this to him. Not now. Please."

"Well I must speak with him anyway. If you would proceed," she gestured toward the door.

"I will, but please, it will be very hard on him if you say anything."

She knocked on the door and Zach opened it with a "Hey Ang!" He jumped and swallowed hard, "And, um, Mother."

He let them both into the apartment and asked his mother to please, sit, while he spoke with Angela.

The two walked towards Matt's room. When Angela was sure that Mrs. Addy was out of ear-shot, she spoke. "Zach, I'm so sorry. I didn't know who she was in the elevator until we were both standing at your door. Oh Zach, she's an awful person!"

"Try living with her. It's okay though, I have to just tell her that she needs to leave and that I don't want her in my life anymore because I'm happy." he said with a sign and a bright smile.

"Good, honey. And remember, no matter what she says, you are a great dad to Matt and we love you, ok?" she said, hugging him the best she could with the belly. "Oh, crap, I have to go. Jack's waiting outside and he's gonna kill me. I'll see you later, ok?"

"Thanks, Ang. Could you tell Dr. Brennan that I'll be a little late?"

"Of course. And for the millionth time, she said for you to call her Temperance!" he chuckled as they walked toward the living room.

"See you at work, Zach." said Angela, walking out the door.

"Bye Ang."

After she left, Zach sat down on the couch, across from his mother. "I have a feeling I'm not going to like this conversation."

"You work with that woman?" said his mother, is disbelief. "She seems so below your high caliber of expertise!"

"She's an artist, Mother. She reconstructs the faces of the bones so we can identify the body. She's one of the most crucial people on our team. Her husband does the lab work on the different material around the body and is also extremely crucial to our process. Don't you dare say that they are not of my caliber." retorted Zach.

"Well. The real reason I came here is to discuss the child. I was going to have a rather stern lecture with you but that woman encouraged me not too. But I thin-"

Zach cut her off. "No, Mother. I am happy with my life. I'm a dad! I have a great job and the most unbelievable friends anyone could ever ask for! I'm happy! And no matter what you say, what you do, you can't take that away from me! All my life you did this to me! You said that everything I did was wrong! But now I'm a grown man, Mother, and I'm happy. So please, get out of my apartment. And don't come back."

And outside the door, with her ear pressed up against the door, Angela smiled, and hurried out to the elevator, and down to meet Jack.

**wow I was so happy writing that whole shpeil from Zach! I feel like he needs to do that every once and a while! and by the way, I think his new makeover looks absolutely horrible and he looks ridiculously nerdy so I will not be applying that in this story**

**so please please please review and constructive criticism is requested!!!!**


	5. Chapter 5

**hmmmm…don't know whats going in this chapter yet…I guess I'll find out soon enough**

**I just wanted to point out something. On the Christmas-quarantine-in-the-lab episode, I absolutely love Zach's family. And I feel bad that in the last chapter I made his mother so mean and nasty! So now you know that I didn't mean it but it'd be kinda weird to change it now, so one with the story!**

**Love my reviewers….you know who you are.**

_**The Need For Calculations Chapter 5**_

When Angela got back into the car, where Jack had been waiting for over 20 minutes, she quickly started in on a rant about how absolutely horrible his mother was but how great Zach had been. Jack listened intently, and pulled into Dunkin' Donuts, needing coffee.

They ordered on the drive-thru (a large coffee for Jack and a medium tea for Angela) and started driving to the Jeffersonian. After parking they quickly went inside.

Booth and Brennan were scared to death when Angela came bustling into the lab. "Oh my gosh, Ang. You trying to turn me into this guy?!" Booth said, gesturing to the set of bones lying on the table.

"You'll never guess what happened! I was bringing Matt back and I was standing outside the elevator and this freakin' old lady has the nerve to say-" exclaimed Angela, being cut of by Jack telling her to calm down, for the love of all that is good and holy.

She quickly filled them in on the rest of the story and they were so engrossed in the tale that they didn't hear Zach come in.

"Hey guys."

"Oh my gosh Zach!" exclaimed Angela. "She's absolutely horrible!" Booth and Brennan nodded in agreement.

"I know. But I told her to leave. I never want to see her again." said Zach with a smile. "Now what do we have here?" he added, rubbing his hands together and smiling.

The rest of the day went normally, as did the next month. Angela's belly grew even more, and Brennan started planning her baby shower with a bunch of their other friends and the team. Matt was getting older, now a cute little one-and-a-half year old. He was just about to start talking, and Zach couldn't have been happier.

So a part of the team was gathered in the lab on a Thursday, working hard on identifying a victim from a fire. Booth was blabbing away on his cell phone, gesturing insanely with his hands as he spoke, while Jack and Temperance were each running separate tests. Zach was off in a different part of the Jeffersonian, filling out paperwork, while Angela was working on some digital restoration in Temperance's office. Suddenly, a gruff voice sounded from right outside the lab.

"Dr. Brennan?" asked the buff security guard, Teeny. "This lady says she's gotta see Dr. Zach. You know where he is?"

The team looked over and saw an old, very dressed-up woman standing in front of them. "I need to see Zachary. The matter is urgent." she announced, sounding very prestigious.

Suddenly, Angela appeared. "Hey guys, I-." She stopped when she saw the woman. "You." she said in a low tone.

"Oh, its you. Where is Zachary?" replied the woman, sticking her nose up into the air.

"You have no business here, Mrs. Addy. Zach doesn't want to see you and you know that. He doesn't need you making him miserable." said Angela, stepping through into the lab.

"On the contrary, Mrs. Hogin-Daaz, was it? His father is dying and has requested to see Zachary right away. Now where is he, we must be off." retorted Mrs. Addy.

"Hodgins. I'll get him, but if you're lying, Mrs. Addy, I-"

"Why would I lie about my husband dying? I married him for his money, but even so, I still had 2 children with the man. Hmph, now run along and fetch him immediately." she replied, sticking her nose up and waving her off.

Angela stalked off and Mrs. Addy took a seat beside the lab doors, nose high and hands resting on her gold walking stick.

About 10 minutes later, Angela came back with a confused looking Zach. Before his mother could even say anything, he said, "I'm calling Alyssa. I'm not going with you unless I know that you're not lying."

Zach walked away and came back a few minutes later, with his eyes glistening. "She said we should go. I have to get Matt." he said, getting his coat from the lab. Then he directed his voice to Temperance. "Dr. Brennan, I'll be out for a-"

She cut him off. "Take as long as you need, Zach. We love you, okay?"

"Ok. Thanks. Good-bye guys." he said, leaving with his mother.

**BonesBonesBonesBonesBonesBones**

He agreed that he would go to his apartment and get Matt, and his mother would get him there. He paid the babysitter and let her off early. He packed a bag for himself and Matt, and left with his mother. The private jet took them to Cincinnati Airport, and a limo took them the half-hour drive to the hospital.

His dad was apparently dying of lung cancer, from so many years of cigar smoking. He had requested to see Zach and his sister, Alyssa, before he died.

Zach met Alyssa on the 4th floor of the hospital, in the lounge by the elevators. She was a short woman, with long silky red-brown hair and green eyes. **(a/n: picture Ginny Weasly from Harry Potter with darker hair). **Her boyfriend of 3 years, Brock, was there also. Alyssa finally met her nephew, and immediately clicked with him. She took him and held him, and directed Zach to go inside and speak with his father.

Zach had never exactly been close with his father. He had always wanted to be something science related, but his father always wanted him to be involved in sports. He was always involved in some kind of sport, be it baseball, football, hockey, soccer, anything to keep his father happy. All Zach really wanted to do was stay home with his chemistry set, or stay after school with his science teacher, but is father insisted he join every sport he could think of. Naturally, Zach was horrible at every sport his father enrolled him in, but there was nothing he could do. So he obeyed his father until the older teams started making cuts, and he finally was kicked off every one of them. His father had been sad, but Zach was relieved.

His relationship with his father had been strained all his life, but it reached its worst point when he announced he wanted to become a forensic anthropologist. His father was a businessman, always involved in the economy and stocks, so this was a hard blow to him. He practically disowned him, not kicking him out of the house, but never talking to him again. He only paid for a small portion of Zach's college tuition, and Zach had to work for the rest. It had always made him sad that his father would never be proud of him, but he worked hard and achieved his goals and that made him happy enough.

So as Zach walked toward the hospital room, thoughts were swimming through his head. "Why does he want o see me? Ugh, please don't let him yell at me like Mother." He arrived at the room, took a deep breath, and opened the door.

And there lay his father, weak and gray. Years of scheming an moneymaking had ruined him, leaving him wrinkled and tired. His face etched with wrinkles, his once black hair now gray, Zach gazed upon the man that gave him so many years of turmoil and rejection. He opened his eyes feebly and managed to say, "Oh, Zachary. Come here, where I can see you."

Zach walked over and sat beside his father. It was quiet for a few seconds, until his father spoke.

"Your mother tells me you have a son now. Michael, is it?"

"Matthew. He's one and a half. He's outside with Alyssa."

"I must meet him later. Oh, I can't believe I'm a grandpa. I'm too old."

"Father, why did you want me here? You practically disowned me, and haven't spoken to me since I told you I wanted to be a forensic anthropologist. Now your sitting talking to me like we've been friends all this time. I'm not going to do this, Dad. I won't. You've never let me do what I wanted to do. I wanted to be smart. Not athletic, not a jock. And I pushed forward and I accomplished my dreams. I'm a doctor now. Dr. Zach Addy. I have a great job, working with a best selling author who is one of the best anthropologists in the country! I'm happy, ok? But you always look down on me. But I'm just as good as you now. And I'm going to give Matt a great life. Whether you approve or not."

Now he was silent. His father stared down at his hands, not saying anything. It was quiet for a few moments, until his father finally spoke.

"That's really what you think? That I was never proud of you?"

"Well, it's kind of obvious. You've never supported me."

"Zachary, listen. I know I never showed it. I never displayed it. Never expressed it. But Zach, you have no idea how proud I am of you. I know about Dr. Brennan. I've read her books and all her studies. I've been interested in science all my life. But my desire for money was too great. I took the path that got me rich. And I haven't regretted it a day of my life. I am so proud of all you've accomplished Zachary. And I wish I could be here to watch you continue to succeed. And I'm sorry I can't be. You're my son Zachary, and I'll always love you. Ok?"

Zach nodded, and his father held out his hand. He shook it firmly and smiled.

"Now then. How about we get that little boy in here so I can meet him?" said his dad, slapping his knee.

Matthew and Zach's dad immediately hit it off. Zach stayed for a few days, as his father continued to decline in health. He got a call during the middle of the night that he had to be put on life support because he had stopped breathing, and in the morning he would be taken off it.

He went to the hospital the next morning and stood around the bed with his mother and sister, while the nurses slowly eased him off the life support system. He gripped his father's hand firmly, and felt a tear slide down his cheek. He never thought he would shed a tear for this man, but now they were falling freely. He stayed in the room until they had to go, and took one final glance at the man who he called his father.

The funeral service was one day. The team sent a huge wreath of flowers and their condolences, saying they were sorry they couldn't be there because of an urgent case that had come up. All his distant family met Matthew, and it was basically a normal funeral.

His father was cremated, as per his wishes, the day after the funeral. He stood with his mother and sister as they scattered the ashes on the North Country Golf Course, where he had requested they be scattered. Zach finally felt at peace when the ashes flew away in the wind, like his father was smiling down at him.

Zachary returned home finally the day after the ashes were scattered. Life resumed normally, and Zach was happy. And Hope can never seem to find a good way to end her chapters.

**Well hope u liked!! I know it was kinda cheesy, but gimme a break. I worked hard to finish this Sunday night b4 I go back to school. hopefully I'll get another chapter up soon, but I have lots of schoolwork ahead so don't expect lots out of me.**

**NOW PLEASE REVIEW!!! CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM BEGGED FOR!!!!!!!!**


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